As you examine the Orioles' roster and align it with Andy MacPhail's two- or three-year plan for rebuilding the franchise, there are precious few names that one can imagine being there when the club is fighting for a playoff spot in some future September.
There are Jeremy Guthrie, Adam Jones, Nick Markakis and maybe a few others, but it's a fairly short list and among the position players, it's Markakis whose name is, or should be, at the top of that list.
The team and Markakis' agent had been in talks for a contract extension, but those discussions have reportedly been suspended until after the season. Markakis will be eligible for arbitration in the offseason, and he's under the contractual control of the club through 2011.
